


The Braid

by swanqueenfic13



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: 3x17, Gen, Headcanon, Headcanon of where the braid came from, Mentions of Reign, Mentions of Supergirl, Missing Scene, Spoiler alert Alex did it, That Braid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-05-08 07:22:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14689263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swanqueenfic13/pseuds/swanqueenfic13
Summary: So I just kept thinking about The Braid from 3x17 because if I braided my own hair, no way would it look that perfect. I know she's Lena so she does everything exceedingly well, but I just have this headcanon that there are some things Lena never had to learn how to do (like braiding her own hair).Basically just a fluffy scene of Alex braiding Lena's hair and them bonding over how much they care about Sam.





	The Braid

“If you’re coming with us, you can’t be wearing a dress and heels,” Alex had said before walking away. Lena stood still for a moment, glancing down at her outfit. Sure, she knew that office-wear wouldn’t be the best for going to some other dimensional forest to track down Samantha’s consciousness, but she didn’t really have any options. When Alex realized Lena was still standing there, she turned. “Are you coming? We have some extra uniform stuff you can borrow.” Lena nodded, immediately hurrying to catch up with Alex.

They were silent as they walked and Lena tried to resist the urge to fidget with her fingers. They made their way into what appeared to be a locker room, albeit slightly nicer than the facility that Lena had been forced to use in high school. The lockers were large and wooden, closer to cupboards than metal lockers. Everything was spaced out and the lockers created rows and aisles that allowed for some privacy. The lockers were on a soft-looking dark blue carpet while the shower areas gave way to black and white tiles. Lena had been so distracted by the decor that she nearly walked into Alex when she stopped suddenly, opening a locker. She rifled through the options—all black—before plucking out a pair of black workout pants and a black zip-up jacket.

“This should fit,” Alex said simply. She gave Lena a brief once-over. “We have sports bras and stuff if you need… undergarments and… things like that, too,” Alex said, the calm agent facade fading into awkwardness, red cheeks and anxiously rubbing the back of her neck. Lena cleared her throat, willing her cheeks not to blush. Of course, they did anyway.

“Yes, please,” she said, her voice cracking. Once she had all of the clothes she needed, Alex led her to a stall and stepped away to give Lena a moment to change. She worked quickly, efficiently. She took down her hair, sparing a moment to rub her temples, wincing at the tension-headache her tight ponytail had caused. Once she was dressed, Lena pulled on the black sneakers and socks Alex had also managed to conjure up—all in her correct size. 

“You can’t go into a dangerous situation like this with your hair down. It’ll blow all over the place and get in your way, or someone could grab it and use it to their advantage,” Alex pointed out as soon as Lena stepped out. Lena grunted, frustrated by the way her day has been going. Every minute there’s someone telling her she’s done something else wrong; she just can’t win.

“I knew that,” Lena murmured, though it was abundantly clear she did  _ not _ .

“You want help?” Alex offered. “I had long hair like this when I first started, so I got pretty good at figuring out the best ways to pull it back.”

“I think I can manage a ponytail, agent Danvers,” Lena replied sarcastically.

“I would advise against it,” Alex hummed softly.

“What?” Lena asked.

“Oh, nothing. Just, um, I recommend against a ponytail like that, is all.”

“And why pray tell, is that?” Lena asked, raising one skeptical eyebrow. Her arms were raised above her head, holding her ponytail back in place.

“Hairs will fall out too easily, and it’s too high on your head. It’s too easy for an attacker to grab,” Alex explained.

“Then what do you recommend, agent Danvers?” Lena asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“A braid. It’s tight, it’s close to your head so it won’t be easy for someone to grab, and it’s less likely to fall apart.” Lena hesitated. “Do you want me to do it?”

“I am the CEO of a billion-dollar corporation. I have two PhDs, one in biomedical engineering and one in mechanical engineering. I can figure out how to twist my hair to make a braid,” Lena said haughtily, cheeks pink. In truth, she’d never learned how to braid her own hair since the nanny or her maid would do it for her. When she was older, Lena just figured she could get by on ponytails or buns, or else she’d hire someone to do her hair.

“Oh, shut up, Lena,” Alex sighed, rolling her eyes. “Sit down and let me do it. Brainy’s probably almost done, we don’t have time to argue.” Lena opened her mouth to protest, but Alex gave her a stern look and she acquiesced, sitting on the bench with her back facing Alex. They sat quietly as Alex pulled the brush through Lena’s hair and Lena involuntarily relaxed, always having loved the feeling of someone playing with her hair.

“Can I ask you something?” Alex asked softly. 

“Sure,” Lena sighed, preparing for the Inquisition, part two.

“How did you do it? I have my MD and I ran every test I knew, but I couldn’t find anything.” Lena could hear the vulnerability in her tone, the way she was doubting her own ability.

“I knew what to look for. You went in looking for a  _ human _ malady and you found none. I had the advantage of having seen Sam change, so I knew that I was looking for something more,” Lena explained. 

“Tilt your head back. And when did she change? How?” Lena tilted her head back as Alex threaded her fingers through her raven hair, pulling and weaving it together.

“We were in my office, just talking. I said something that upset her—I don’t even remember what it as, exactly—and she just… shifted. Her posture changed, her facial expressions, her voice got deeper and more stern. But what really sealed the deal for me was the way her eyes turned red for just a moment. Then she snapped out of it and had no idea what had happened, but I did. I knew she was Reign. Once I had that information, I put together a timeline of her blackouts and Reign’s attacks and they lined up just about perfectly,” Lena explained.

“But she was  _ human _ when I tested her. That’s what I don’t understand,” Alex continued.

“When something triggers Reign, Sam’s very DNA rewrites itself. Reign is like an alternate personality; when Sam is threatened or when she gets angry or she sees someone else being hurt, Reign takes over and Sam is put into that forest place.”

“Do you have the data and scans for Reign? Maybe I can take a look at those to see how it compares to Sam and then how it compares to Supergirl and Superman. If we can find some of those biological differences, maybe we can figure out a way to separate the two.”

“I can show them to you once we get back from the alternate dimension,” Lena offered.

“Perfect. And you are all done.” Alex tied off the braid and Lena stood, reaching back to feel the braid. 

“Thank you. And… Sam wanted me to bring you in, to ask you to help. I told her we shouldn’t. It was stupid and reckless and selfish, but I didn’t want to risk Sam’s life when you brought in the DEO. I was afraid for her, but it was more than that. I was afraid that… that you’d see me experimenting on a Kryptonian and using Kryptonite and lock me up like my brother as if the two years I’ve spent in this city garnering goodwill and trust would be destroyed in an instant, but it seems I’ve managed to do that anyway, so…” Lena trailed off. She was careful to keep her voice airy and light as if Alex couldn’t see her chin trembling.

“No, you haven’t destroyed it. You made a stupid mistake, and you should have come to us, but I guess I get why you didn’t. I know you wanted to protect your friend, but so do I. So can we just… we need to work together if we want to solve this. I trust you with Sam, and I trust you to do your best to save her, and I trust you have good intentions. Can you trust that I do, too?” Alex asked as they walked back out of the locker room.

“I do,” Lena said, beaming. She snorted. “Try telling that to Supergirl, though.”


End file.
